When it comes to the Celtics, I'm in the Championship or Bust camp. I'm a giant KG fan, but if the team doesn't have a good chance of winning this year or next as presently constituted, and Ainge can't fortify the roster to make them more competitive, I would support a trade for assets.

Everyone talks about how DA was in favor of Red trading Bird and McHale at the end for Person, Schrempf and Sam Perkins. If Red made those moves, maybe the team doesn't plunge into a decade of despair. Red chose to trade a lesser asset, Ainge, to bring in two bigs to help fortify the Big 3 for another run, and it didn't work.

In the NBA, top of the league talent wins title. In almost every case, that kind of talent comes to a team through the draft, (with the three "ensemble" champions, the Mavs, Cs and Pistons, being the outliers) or unrestricted free agency, in LeBron and Shaq's cases.

Boston doesn't seem to be a place that can snag a top five player through free agency. The best chance for the Cs to rebuild into a championship team is to garner as many assets as possible, by using their most trade-able assets now. If that means winning only 36 games this year and missing the playoffs, instead of winning 44 games with KG and PP and being dispatched in 5 games by Miami in the first round of the playoffs, that's OK with me.

Maybe the ping pong balls finally go this team's way (the Cs can send the team doctor to the drawing). Maybe one of the acquired young assets, like a Bledsoe or a Harrison Barnes, becomes a breakout player.

A whole new generation of Celtics fans have tasted success. They're not going to want to see the team wallow in the middle ground for a decade or two like the last time the Cs brass chose not to trade off legendary pieces of a fast fading dynasty.

Also, I'd like to see Pierce and KG play for another title in their final years. I thought it would have been in Boston, but the gods have been quite unkind to this team regarding injuries ever since Pierce's miracle recovery out of the wheelchair in 2008. Pierce on Golden State, trying to push that team and their rabid (and deserving) fan base over the top, would be fun, and KG on my second team, the Clippers, would also be good. Getting the Clippers over the top, marginalizing the Lakers in LA, would be an added benefit for Celtics fans

If only championships matter, then every Olympian who didn't win a gold medal is a failure (or was robbed).

Logged

"The worst thing that ever happened in sports was sports radio, and the internet is sports radio on steroids with lower IQs.” -- Brian Burke, former Toronto Maple Leafs senior adviser, at the 2013 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference

It's more about memories than championships for me. Championships make the best memories, but if we play hard and play good basketball, I'm good with that. When we got blown out in our last home game against the Heat and everyone was chanting "let's go Celtics" that was special. I think every fan wants to be a part of something, and being a fan of the Celtics is being a part of something big.

Legacy matters to me. Tommy has been drunk on the kool-aid for decades. Russell still pokes his head out every now and then to drop wisdom. Even when Bird was with the Pacers, everyone thought of him as a Celtic. It's because being a Celtic means something. I'd love for Paul and KG (and Rondo) to hang around after they retire, to be a part of the legacy.

Ray didn't want that. That's what the betrayal was to me. He just wanted what he though was a better shot at another ring. Loyalty is also why I wouldn't feel right trading our best players for guys because they're younger or different. I've seen Paul grow as a player and person. Every time he steps on the court it brings back memories. And every time he steps on the court, I know he's about winning a championship.

Yes, in the long run. I don't care if the Celtics win a championship in any given year, because it's not going to happen every year. What I do want is one of two things:

1) For the Celtics to be a reasonable contender (capable of going deep in the playoffs without luck on their side)

or

2) When they don't have a reasonable shot, to know that they are taking appropriate steps to get there in 1-3 seasons, depending on the situation.

All I want is something to hope on. In 2006-2007, it was that we would get Oden (oops!) or Durant (drats!) and that the young players would get better while losing. Obviously that's not how things turned out (albeit for the better) but I still found the season enjoyable seeing early flashes of Rondo, watching Gerald Green win the slam dunk competition, and imagining that Ryan Gomes had potential.

On the contrary, this year started out with hope, but I stopped enjoying the season during the recent six-game losing streak, when it was clear that Bradley's return was merely coincidental with and not causal of the prior winning streak. Rondo and Sully out for the year have made it worse, and I want to know that this team is taking the steps to return to championship contention, be it next year or in a few years with younger players. I won't mind if someone gets traded as long as we get back something that gives me hope. If Paul gets traded, for instance, I could rationalize it as long as we got back some good young players and picks. It would even give me a team to root for in the playoffs assuming that no Paul means no playoffs.

So yes, championships are the only thing that matter, but it counts if I feel I have reasonable hope to experience one again sometime soon.

A championship is the end-goal, but it's definitely not the only thing that matters. I liken each season to a TV series, where the joy of the journey far outweighs how the final episode plays out. Its value is a culmination of everything, from characters to the funny bits to the dramatic plot twists.

Plus, it's all relative. Imagine if the C's were a young team, full of spare parts and outcasts, with no hopes of a championship. And then, they eliminate the Miami Heat in the first round. Even if they get eliminated in the 2nd round, the season would definitely still be regarded as heroic and memorable.

Tonight is a good example of why I say no. We're pretty unlikely to win a title this year, and the Lakers are even more unlikely. In the big scale of the league it didn't mean much. But this was a great game to watch, and made an otherwise ordinary Thursday really enjoyable. Can't tell me that's not worthwhile.

Tonight is a good example of why I say no. We're pretty unlikely to win a title this year, and the Lakers are even more unlikely. In the big scale of the league it didn't mean much. But this was a great game to watch, and made an otherwise ordinary Thursday really enjoyable. Can't tell me that's not worthwhile.

Tonight is a good example of why I say no. We're pretty unlikely to win a title this year, and the Lakers are even more unlikely. In the big scale of the league it didn't mean much. But this was a great game to watch, and made an otherwise ordinary Thursday really enjoyable. Can't tell me that's not worthwhile.

Sho nuff!

I think this is a better example. We didn't win a title that year but i got to witness one of the best playoff series of all time with my team coming out on top. This video still gives me goosebumps. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yg7asI27M_A

Absolutely not. The Team and it's attempts to win Championships should be warranted but the flooring of a decent NBA Team is as important because winning it all takes not only skill in trading and drafting but luck also. So if one were to cry over not winning Championship every year that would be very wearing.